Harvesting Rice

Sheryl and I recently returned from an area in East Kalimantan called Lesan. This is a high priority area and The Nature Conservancy (TNC) has been working with the local communities to help preserve the remaining wild areas. The Dayak village we met was extremely welcoming and Sheryl and I joined the community as they harvested rice. The villages in this area are undergoing a rapid transformation from a traditional way of living off the land to a more "modern" lifestyle of palm oil plantations. TNC's outreach program is quite extraordinary and they have a committed staff working with all the stakeholders to help ensure a sustainable future for this area. We stayed at a research station during the evening in the heart of the Lesan protected area. We woke to the sound of Gibbons and birds and watched proboscis monkey's playing in the trees on the other side of the river. This was our television. These were our sounds. Last night we stayed at a hotel in Tanjung Redab and watched movies I've already forgotten the name of. A much less interesting and totally forgettable evening.

All I can say is I am envious. I touch people's lives everyday in clinic, hopefully for the better, by educating them about their bodies and the "conservation" of their health through nutrition and exercise, but I long for time out in nature, with a purpose, as the two of you are experiencing. Way to go!